Heel-press.



a v. HART.

HEEL PRESS. APPLICATION man ma; 13. 191s.

Patented Oct. 15, 1918.l

wg@ Mw fisuras saafrns retrasar @sitios FRED V. HART, 0F LYNN,MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPO-HEEL-PRESS.

Application filed March 13, 1916.

To all whom it may concern.' f.

Be it known that I, FRED V. HART, a citizen of the United States,residing at Lynn,

,in the county of Essex and State of Massai tion of heels built frompasted lifts. The

type of press in general use for a long period of years was large enoughto receive between the press plate or clamps a considerable number ofheels laid out in rows on superposed boards. Before thequick settingpaste now used considerably was discovered, which has been termed avulcanizing heel paste, it was necessary to leave the heels in the pressat least 24 hours and sometimes several days before they dried outsufliciently to be lit to be compressed. With the new type of press,hereinafter referred to, using a pressure of approximately llOipounds, aperiod as short as five minutes has been found to be Suthcient toproduce a permanently cohering heel pile. Increase of pressure shortensthe period of time named. There has somewhat recently come into use avnew type of heel press comprising a number of individual presses mountedon an endless carrier, the freshly pasted heel piles being insertedindividually between the open clamps of each press which, after theclamps are closed, pass through the orbit of the carrier and the heel isthen ejected. The carrier is of such size, compared to the pressureexerted on the heel, as to compel the heel pile to remain under pressureuntil the lifts lirmly adhere. Such a machine, which may be used witheither the new or the old paste, isillustrated and described in myassignees application for Letters Patent of the United States Serial No.67,814, filed December 20, 1915.

The present invention is particularly adapted to a heel press of thegeneral type described in said application but those Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Oct. 15, 1918.

Serial No. 83,837.

skilled in the art will recognize that its utility, is not limited tothe presses of such a machine.

Before explaining the novel features of the present invention it isparticularly pointed out that in this specification the term heel lift7is used inclusively to designate the pieces of material, of whatevernature they may be, that are utilized as the components of the heelbeing built, and the term heel block is used to designate the productobtained by piling the pasted lifts prior to the compressing operation,that is, either the freshly pasted heel pile, which is a wet or greenheel block, or the dry pressed heel pile ready for the heel compressingoperation, in order to distinguish this article from the commercial heelblank which is the product of the heel compressor.

Because of the extremely tenacious quality of the vulcanizing heel pasteand the thin film into which it is pressed by the clamps of the heelpress it is extremely diliicult to tear the lifts apart. This is ofcourse true to a lesser extent with the older paste. Consequently, itbecomes very diflicult to remove the heel block from the smooth facedclamps now in use on heel presses, if some of the paste being used hasfound its Way between the contacting surfaces of the block and clampingmembers. Unfortunately, due to the manner in which the heel piles arebuilt, this latter condition is one which is the rule rather than theexception, that is, when the heel blocks are ready for the pressingoperation paste has been slopped upon and is adhering to their heelseats and tread faces with which the clamp members contact when theblocks are under pressure. As a result it is only by meansl of a heavyblow that the heel blocks can be dislodged after the clamps are opened.The whole block is generally found to be stuck to one'of the clampplates as firmly as the individual lifts are stuck to each other. Itwill be obvious that this is an extremely undesirable condition.

The object of the present invention is to overcome the sticking of theheel blocks to the clamp plates while still utilizing the usual methodof building heels which permits paste to adhere to the outer sides ofthe heel pile as well as to the inner faces of the lifts.

. In aeccrdancs with this abject it is prof or interrupted blockengaging face, that is,

with alternate raised and depressedk portions. The plates thus offer toosmall a contacting surface to permit a film of paste to form ofsufiicient area to cause an adhere ence. A further advantageis securedfrom such a formation of the clamps. The depressed portions of theplates provide paste receiving containers whereby whatever paste may beon the outside of the heel block is kept in a thick enough layer toovercome its tendency to set during the time that the heel block remainsunder pressure.

In the best form of the invention at present known each member' of theclamp is pro` vided in its heel block engaging surface with a series ofchannels spaced so close together that the heel contacting portions ofthe clamping members are merely a series of long, narrow edges. Thechannels are made deep enough to contain such an amount of paste that itis still wet or fluid when the heel block is ready to be ejected fromthe clamp. Under these conditions the heel block may readily be removedby the relatively light pressure exerted by a hand operated pusher orsimilar ejecting device.

To the accomplishment of the above ,object the invention comprises thenovel features hereinafter explained in detail and then particularlypointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings illustrat ing a preferred embodiment of theinvention,

VFigure l is a side elevation ofY a heel press clamp detached from theendless carrier which sustains it and others like it.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the clamp shown in Fig. 1, the -stipplingindicating paste.

Fig. 8 isa perspective showing the underframe plate 8. The frame platesurrounds the top of a tubular depending member 9, within which is acoiled spring 1()v resting on a shelf at its botto-m. A rod 11 extendsthrough the spring 10 having a head 12 bearing on the spring andadjustable lock nuts 13 on its lower end, outside the member 9, whichlimit the upward movement of the rod. On the head 12 is supported thelower clamping member 1l.

Rising from one side of the frame plate 8 is a rigid standard 15.Opposite the standard 15 is a second yieldingly heldI standard 16. Thestandard 1.6 is pivoted by its lower end to a lug. 17 extendinglaterally from the member 9 and is held pressed inward, tow-ard thefra-me plate 8, by a Lcoiled spring 18 suit-ably connected by its endsto a lug on the standard and to the member 9. Each of the standards isprovided with a series of bores 19 within which may rest the trunnions20 of the pivot-ally mounted, adjustable upper clamping member 21.

It will be understood that the heel block 22. is clamped between theplates 14, and 21 of the clamp 'by the pressure exerted on the lowerclamp plate by the spring 10 and that the clamp is openedl and the heelblock is re.-

leased by compressing the. spring in any suitable manner, as byvdowrnvard pressure on the arm v23 attachedl to the lower plate.

The novel feature of the clamp which forms the subject matter of thepresen-t application residesv in lthe formation or configuration of itsheelblock engagingV faces, that is, the provision of the paste receivingchannels 2l and 25 in the upper and lower clamping members respectively.4These are pret erably inthe form. of semi-circular depressionsextending in a parallel series across the heel block contacting face ofeach plate. The two plates might be saidito have corrugated pressingsurfaces thus reducing the area of the plates which contacts with theheel block, it being obvious that only the upper edges .of the ridgespress against the heel block. It lshould he understood, however, thatthe area. of the `portion of each plate which contacts with the heelblock is maintained sufficiently great to permit a substantial pressureto be applied without disiigu-rement of the surface ofl the heel block.rlhe channels are deep -eno-iugh, in practice about to receive and holda layer of p aste from the ioutside of the heel block suf,- licientlythick to prevent its drying while theheel` block is inthe press. rlvhusas the paste Aon the heel block, which contacts with the blockcontactngportions yof the clamping members, is prevented from spreading into afilm of: sufficient area to ,cause adherence, the block is :easilyejected. Furthermore, if the channels 24: become lled with paste suchpaste, because of its depth, will not dry and set.v Thus the difticultyof having the heel blocks adhere to the clamping members, with itsattendant disadvantages hereinbefore pointed out, is overcome.

fhe preferred form of the clamping plates, thatis, the provision of thechannels 24: for reducing their block contacting surfaces, offersanother advantage. By cutting the channels transversely of the conveyerchains 5 (see Fig. 2) the ridges formed between them provide,substantially, tracks which assist the ejector, engaging the heelbreast, in easily dislodging the heel block from the clamp at thecompletion of the pressing operation. Because the usual form of ejectoroperates in a plane near the surface of the lower clamp plate 14, out ofan abundance of caution, the edges of the ridges between the channels onthe upper plate 21 are preferably rounded (see Fig. 3) so as to offer noflat surface whatever to retain a lilm of paste between the clamp andblock, and minimize to the greatest extent possible the contingency ofthe block sticking to the upper plate. While not deemed essential theridges on the lower plate 14: may also be rounded.

The present inventor believes himself to be the first to produce a clampfor heel presses which will prevent an appreciable adherence, of theheel block under pressure, to the press plates of the clamp. From theforegoing description it will be understood that the essential featureof the construction is the reduction of the area of the material, ofwhich the press plates are formed, which permits a union between plateand block when paste is interposed therebetween. By means of asuiiicient reduction of such area the liability of disaster due toadherence of the heel block to the clamp is so minimized as to benegligible. Preferably the normal arca of the acting, or heel blockcontacting, face of each press plate is reduced to such an extent as toprevent a suiicient amount of paste to gather between said face and theblock to cause adhesion to an objectionable degree. As hereinbeforedescribed this is accomplished by providing an interrupted face on thepress plates comprising alternate portions of the press plate materialand air spaces, but under the broader aspect of the invention thedesired result may be obtained by constructing a press plate having thework engaging plane of its face interrupted in any feasible way to formareas Copies of this patent :may be obtained for which permit and whichdo not permit an adherence of paste thereto.

The nature and scope of the present invention having been indicated andthe preferred embodiment of the invention having been specificallydescribed, what is claimed as new, is:

l. A heel pressing machine having, in combination, a frame supportingoppositely facing press plates at least one of which is provided with aninterrupted surface acting to prevent undue adhesion between the heelblock and plate and to permit a substantial pressure to be applied tothe heel block without materially aecting the shape of its surface, andmeans for closing said plates within the frame under pressure.

2. A heel pressing machine, having, in combination, a heel clampincluding a press plate having a surface comprising' alternate ridgesand depressions of such proportions as to permit a substantial pressureto be applied to the heel block without materially affecting the shapeof the surface and to prevent undue adhesion between the block andplate, and means for closing said clamp on the heel block.

A heel pressing machine, having, in combination, pressure producingmechanism comprising two plates having interrupted surfaces of suchconstruction as to reduce the heel block engaging area which permitsadherence of paste, one of said plates being yieldingly urged toward theother; and means for separating the plates to provide for insertion andremoval of the heel block.

ln a heel pressing machine, pressure producing mechanism comprisingopposed press plates having corrugated heel block contacting facesacting to prevent undue adhesion between the block and plates whilepermitting a substantial pressure to be applied without injury to theblock.

A heel pressing machine, having, in combination, a heel press for pastedheel blocks comprising upper and lower clamping members havinginterrupted heel block contacting faces whereby the paste carried by thetread face and heel scat of the heel block is prevented from spreadinginto a thin film while the heel block is under pressure between saidmembers, and means acting on one of said clamping members to move ittoward the other and apply pressure to the heel block.

FRED V. HART.

ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D.C.

